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All's Fair
At the airfield on Cobra Island Destro receives a report that the airfield has been secured by his Iron Grenadiers. He orders recon teams sent to determine the maneuvers of both Cobra Commander and Serpentor, and for a field kitchen to be set up to provide the troops with a hot meal. Down below in the drain Captain Minh tells the Joe Recon Team that if they don't move fast they will be captured. As Iron Grenadiers enter the tunnels Minh and the Joes crawl down a sluice tunnel. With rain flooding in the Grenadiers decide against checking the sluice out. Cobra Commander and his troops has reached his headquarters. He argues with Zartan over whether to attack Destro or Serpentor and Zarana is shocked at Cobra Commander's concern for rescuing the Baroness. Cobra Commander suddenly remembers the camera he installed in a B.A.T. at the freighter and activates it. Out on the march to the freighter Serpentor and Dr. Mindbender note how the B.A.T.s keep functioning despite having had so much mass blown away and Mindbender spots the camera, which Serpentor immediately destroys. Further down the column Hawk radios the U.S.S. Flagg for reinforcements. On the Flagg Flint dispatches a landing craft tank full on Joes and equipment, as well as Ghostrider the Phantom X-19 stealth fighter to knock out Cobra radar. Meanwhile in the sluice tunnel the Recon Team find the water is rising and then encounter a swarm of rats. Then up above Destro's cook has the leftover slops poured down the drain. Out in the Gulf of Mexico Torpedo, Psyche-Out and Recondo receive orders to land on the west shore while Hawk gets Serpentor to attack from the north, boxing in Cobra Commander. On the island Hawk informs Serpentor of the plans. In Cobra Commander's headquarters Zartan is still concerned about defenses, despite Cobra Commander reassuring him about the electronic surveillance equipment. Zarana asks if they're going to try rescuing the Baroness and suggests Cobra Commander forgets her as not his type, and comes onto him. In the Gulf Ghostrider knocks out two submarines and then attacks the headquarters, destroying the early warning systems. Suddenly Serpentor attacks from the north and Cobra Commander diverts troops and tanks from the west flank to reinforce the defences. Zartan is horrified that this leaves the west flank undefended and is not reassured by protests that the marsh is impenetrable or that the Dreadnoks can hold the line. Angrily he suggests they should rescue the Baroness because Cobra Commander does at least listen to her advice and charges off. The LCT lands on the west shore and heads into the marshes, following a trail laid for them by Croc Master. Hawk radios to tell them Serpentor has attacked without waiting, even though Mindbender warns him about exposing himself on the front line, which Serpentor shrugs off as he needs the troops to respect him. In the swamp the Joes reach quicksand but pass it using the Bridge Layer. Down at the airfield the Recon Team emerges from a manhole by the airfield hangers to find the place deserted as Destro's troops have moved north. On Cobra Commander's western flank the newly arrived Joes attack and rout the Dreadnoks and other Cobra troops, though Zarana escapes. Zarana reaches Cobra Commander at the north wall to tell him the western flank has fallen and that Destro is moving in from the south. Cobra Commander is uncertain of what to do so Zartan seizes the initiative. He climbs onto an upturned Maggot and fires an arrow from his bow. Serpentor declares he can feel victory coming, like the day when the Normans won the Battle of Hastings and King Harold was downed by an arrow in the eye. Suddenly he is killed in the same way. Mindbender immediately leaps forward and charges to Cobra Commander's lines, shouting that they can make a deal, to the astonishment of the Joes. By the time Hawk gets there he finds Mindbender and Cobra Commander agreeing to unite under the latter's leadership to push Destro off the island. Hawk and Zartan share their disgust. Destro comes forward and declares there has been enough fighting and that he will leave if he can take the Baroness. Cobra Commander and Mindbender are surprised but rapidly agree. Mindbender turns to Hawk and points out that as the Joes' deal was with Serpentor, they should now leave the island immediately. On his way back to the shore Destro informs the Recon Team that they too can go home now the war is over. Destro and his sergeant comment on how they secured their objective firing hardly any shots at all - "the right way to do it!" |Appearing1= Featured Characters Featured Vehicles & Equipment |MemorableQuotes1= |Errors1=*Recondo's hair is consistently colored blonde. *Sergeant Major says they won without firing a shot, apparently forgetting the A.G.P.s shooting the crap out of everything last issue. *Not so much an error as an intentional element that just doesn't work, but Ghost Rider's dialog on page 10 is completely ridiculous. |ItemsOfNote1=*'First Appearances:' Ghostrider, Phantom X-19 * No one can remember what Ghostrider's name is or what he looks like. * Although the Battle Force 2000 vehicles can be seen in some shots, the drivers are never visible. * Death of Serpentor. * The issue contains another copy of the map of Cobra Island first seen in issue #74, showing the various routes that have brought all the players to the beach, and a table showing the Cobra schism and the various G.I. Joe operational groups. G.I. Joe references *Zarana says Cobra Commander is acting as though the Baroness had given him his job - which she did. *Zartan compares his arrow shot to the one that killed the Hard Master. This is the first time in the series that an explicit confirmation that he was the killer is given, though it was deduced back in "In Search of Candy" thirty-one issues earlier. |RealWorldRefs1=*The reason Ghostrider is never called by name in this or any other issue of the comic is that Marvel Comics already had a character called Ghost Rider, and didn't want any confusion. *Serpentor references the Battle of Hastings, not realizing the irony until it's too late. *The title is the beginning of the saying "All's fair in love and war," a proverb found in John Lyly's 16th century book Euphues that is commonly used to justify cheating. *Destro obtaining his objective with minimal combat is what Sun Tzu called an ideal victory in the "Art of War". |Footnotes= }} Category:Battle Force 2000 Category:Cobra Civil War